Leading health policy strategist Andrea Harris joins Yale’s Tobin Center as Managing Director of the Health Policy Impact Lab

The Tobin Center for Economic Policy at Yale is pleased to welcome Andrea Harris as the new Managing Director of the Health Policy Impact Lab. Harris brings to Yale nearly two decades of experience shaping U.S. health policy, including in senior leadership positions on Capitol Hill and at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

In her new role, Harris will oversee strategy and operations for the Health Policy Impact Lab, an innovative initiative that fuses empirical research, high-level policy engagement, and top-tier communications to shift public conversations about domestic health spending, to support policymakers, and to raise the productivity of the U.S. health system.

The Lab is directed by Zack Cooper, Associate Professor of Public Health and Economics and Director of Health Policy at the Tobin Center for Economic Policy. Cooper’s research on a wide range of issues in health policy has been cited by Congress and the White House, featured frequently in national media, and directly informed major legislation—including the bipartisan No Surprises Act, which protected consumers from costly medical bills and lowered health spending on the privately insured.

“I know I speak for everyone at the Health Policy Impact Lab and the Tobin Center when I say we are thrilled to have Andrea on board,” said Professor Cooper. “Andrea’s deep experience in the health policy community will help us bring the most rigorous, actionable scholarship to policymakers to advance improvements in the quality and efficiency of our health care system. Our goal is to make the nation’s health system better and more affordable. Andrea is going to help us do that.”

“I’m very pleased to be here at Yale, and to have the opportunity to work alongside so many researchers dedicated to ensuring that best-in-class research and evidence improves the health care systems Americans rely on every day,” Harris said of her new position. “The Lab is doing some truly innovative work, and I’m excited to help chart the path forward as the Lab grows in both size and influence.”

Harris joins the Health Policy Impact Lab from Protect Our Care, where she led efforts to advance reforms aimed at making health care more efficient, affordable, and accessible. Her leadership helped drive national conversations around expanding coverage, lowering prescription drug costs, and improving maternal health outcomes.

From 2018-2023, Harris served as Chief of Staff to Representative Lauren Underwood, where she played a pivotal role in establishing the Congresswoman as a leading voice on health care policy and contributed to landmark legislation that strengthened the Affordable Care Act and addressed critical gaps in care.

Earlier in her career, Harris held senior roles at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services during the Obama Administration, serving as Chief of Staff to two Assistant Secretaries. She began her career on Capitol Hill, working for Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairs Senator Ted Kennedy and Senator Tom Harkin, where she helped shape foundational health policy debates.

Harris holds a Master’s degree in Health Policy and Economics from the London School of Economics and a Bachelor’s degree from UCLA.

Under Harris’s leadership, the Lab will enter a new phase of growth and impact. Her experience working at the intersection of policy, politics, and public engagement will be instrumental in expanding the Lab’s reach and building on its track record of shaping both state and federal health care legislation and policy.

Please join us in welcoming Harris to the Yale community.